It Wasn't For Me
by thedopestofrainbows
Summary: Will Jeff Sterling and Nick Duval, two hopelessly in-love high schoolers, overcome the struggle in their lives and find romance and happiness together? Rated M for saucy scenes. Lacking summary. Mirror of my Klaine FF "I Dreamed it For You"
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Welcome to my newest collection of the fanfiction family! This story is a mirror to "I Dreamed it For You" which is my Klaine sory, so if you were curious you could check that out and get a bit more information about what's going on in the story!**

**Please mind errors, I don't have a beta. But I'm willing to recruit one if they're interested! :D Just tweet me NikoBoussniere or just PMing works too**

**Not much to really say off the bat but enjoy! And Happy Valentine's day!**

**Discalimer: I don't own Glee**

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><p>Jeff wasn't sure when he realized that he was gay.<p>

Maybe he had never been attracted to girls and he just suspected that he was since that was the acceptable thing in their society. Hell, Jeff didn't even know if he could say he was attracted to boys, but he knew he was attracted to one boy in particular.

"Hey Jeff, I'm going to swing by the Lima Bean. Is there anything you need?"

Jeff looked up at the guy addressing him. It wasn't the brunette he was thinking of, but he wasn't unwelcomed company.

"Nah, I'm chill," Jeff shrugged. His gaze went straight to the phone in Blaine's hands and he smiled. "You gonna go see Kurt? Wow six dates already, Anderson. I'm impressed," he added coyly. Blaine grinned and ran his hand through his slicked back, curly locks; it was an action that made Jeff wince because seriously? He couldn't imagine how disgusting Blaine's hand must feel for doing it. Blaine's grin suddenly widened.

"It is our sixth date, isn't it? Maybe I should take him to the park after coffee!" he exclaimed, heading out the door before Jeff could even vocalize a reply to the rhetorical question. Jeff rolled his eyes and pulled out his phone to see three texts from none other than Nick Duval. Jeff blushed in embarrassment for keeping his friend. He would only send three texts and three texts only before deciding to just wait it out and eventually ignore the offender who neglected his conversation. Jeff quickly typed out a reply.

Sorry, talking to Blaine. See you in a few – J

He trotted up the grand staircase to the second floor, walking the large hallways to his room, where he knew Nick was waiting.

It was Friday and the two had plans to go see a movie and probably pick up some chicks. Jeff had only laughed awkwardly to the girl-getting part of the operation.

"Dude, what the heck? Why are you still wearing your uniform?" Nick asked upon Jeff entering the room, but Jeff wasn't paying attention.

Whatever god told Nick it was alright for him to wear skinny jeans was out to see in what situations they could make Jeff pop to worst boners. He had tried not to stare before but Nick's ass looking amazing. So snug in those black jeans, so plush. It was as if Jeff could just reach out and-

"Uh, hello? Earth to Sterling? Has all that bleach soaked into your brain?"

Jeff realized Nick was angrily standing in front of him with his hands on his hips. Jeff had cleared his dry throat and attempted to apologize but nothing came out. Nick shot him a confused look and tried not to get upset at Jeff brushing past him. He just shrugged and went back to brushing his hair in front of their large vanity mirror.

Jeff searched through his drawer for something appropriate. Seeing as he really didn't have a choice between jeans since all of his were skinny, Jeff pulled out a pair and a white, short-sleeved band tee and sleeveless jacket before heading to the bathroom. He got changed and slipped out of his formal shoes and into a comfortable pair of Toms.

"Alright, I'm ready," Jeff announced as he left the bathroom. Nick smiled at him, effectively making Jeff's heart flip.

"Well then, let's go!" Nick said as he grabbed his keys and linked arms with Jeff. The blonde smiled at the contact and let himself be led away by Nick.

Nick, who was always Jeff's everything. His best friend, his confidante, the 3 to his 6 and sometimes the only person he could count on. He felt so lucky to have Nick by his side; so happy. But the happiness was bittersweet as conflicting emotions warred in Jeff's head. Nick had given him everything he needed and Jeff just continued to take and only want more. The consoling hugs Nick gave him when his brother fell ill he wished were kisses, sweet and tender, created to suck the pain away. The occasionally arm slung over the blonde's shoulder he wished could be a proper hug; body to body and as possible. He wanted Nick to love him more than just his best friend and he felt guilty about it. He should just be grateful for what Nick gave him already and swallow down his greedy feelings.

Right?

At some point during Jeff's thoughts, the two had gotten to the car and they started to head out, but the spacey attitude didn't go unnoticed.

"Oh my god. Are you gonna space out like that all night?"

Jeff snorted and shook his head.

"No just thinking. Sorry, dude," he said, leaning back in his seat. "And put your seat belt on, Nick, geez."

Nick rolled his eyes and pulled on his seatbelt while still driving. "You're like my wife or something."

Color shot to Jeff's face. Of all the analogies. He could have just said 'mom' or something. He had to play it cool.

"Hey, I'm trying," he said as off-handedly as he could while slipping on his own seatbelt before Nick could say anything about it. "What are we gonna go see anyways?" he asked, sparking up conversation again.

"Wow, you really weren't paying attention. We're going to see The Help," Nick answered, finally getting his seatbelt on. Jeff groaned.

"I hear that movie's for girls," he whined, slipping down into his seat. "I wanna see Underworld Awakening."

Nick rolled his eyes.

"Jeff, you are such a nerd! You've already seen that movie twice!"

"Hey, third time's the charm."

Nick rolled his eyes. "Did you buy those rooms for the convention, nerd?" he asked.

"Yeah. So two weeks ago, Nick. Get with the program."

Nick was the only one that knew about Jeff's guilty pleasure. He was a geek about pretty much all possible fan bases. A cultured geek, mind you. But he loved it all: comic books, anime, novelty action figures and figurines, and movies. He was a connoisseur. And his passion did not stop him from all the facets of nerdom life. He went to conventions, and tons of them. Nick had been allowed in his world since they were both really big into Power Rangers for a long time, and although Nick would rather spend his time finding some way to snag the affections of the opposite sex, he traveled with Jeff to his conventions.

"Why are we going to go see a girl's movie anyway?"

"Because there are going to be girls there?" Nick said, as if it was the most obvious answer in the world.

Oh, so this was another scheme to get girls. Jeff gave Nick a smile, but in reality he didn't want to get a girl. Couldn't he and Nick go out without an ulterior motive? Nick seemed excited though, so Jeff let it roll off of him.

This was going to be a long night.

"Noooo girls."

Jeff rolled his eyes and plopped down on his bed, watching Nick go about the room.

"Well at least the movie was better than expected," Jeff outlined as Nick faceplanted into the blonde's bed with a huff.

"Yeah, you cried the whole time," he snickered, pushing himself up and sitting beside Jeff.

"I couldn't help it! I tried to keep it together, but when they fired AB-"

Nick rolled his eyes and snorted. "You're such a girl, Jeff."

"Then why am I not available for dating?" Jeff shook off the thought as soon as it came.

"Anyways, what do you want to do tomorrow? Blaine's staying in Lima for the night," Nick started.

"Yeah. And Wes and David are double dating."

Nick sighed and Jeff pretended it wasn't as heartbreaking as it was. Here was a perfectly compatible single guy waiting to take him out on dates!

"I guess that leaves Thad and Trent-"

"No," Nick interrupted. "Thad went home for the weekend, remember? And Trent is job hunting."

A groan escaped both of them as the thought sunk in. They had no plans for that weekend and they realized they really had no lives. Maybe this is why Nick was so desperate to find them some girls.

"I could teach you how to cook," Jeff suggested. Nick perked up.

A long time ago when Nick had sat down with Jeff's parents for a formal introduction, the brunette noticed the taller boy working in the kitchen and instantly interrogated him on his culinary skills, to which Jeff only blushed and admitted yes, he could cook. He had prepared the whole dinner and Nick had never eaten something so heavenly in his life. Afterwards, Nick pulled Jeff aside and demanded cooking lessons or lifelong enslavement of his skills in the kitchen. Needless to say, Jeff chose the cooking lessons.

"What about this stuff?" Nick asked, holding out a bottle he had dug out of the cabinet.

"What's it called?" Jeff asked, his sleeves rolled up as he kneaded pizza dough. Nick caught himself staring way too long at the way the supple muscles flexed with each lurch forward, mind trailing off to the godly torso that those arms were connected to.

"Erm…?"

Nick sputtered when Jeff's chocolate gaze landed on him. He studied the bottle and realized he had never heard of the spice before.

"Cuh-men."

Jeff snickered and Nick stared at the bottle in confusion.

"It's pronounced cumin," Jeff corrected, causing Nick to blush at his blunder. "And I asked for oregano," he said, walking over and plucking the bottle from Nick's hand. He rolled his eyes as Jeff returned the spice to the cabinet, pulling down others as well.

"Well excuse me. If you don't want me to screw something up, you could stick me with something I'm good at," nick pouted, hopping up on one of the barstools and resting his elbows on the granite island top.

"Hey, maybe you can chop some vegetables since you're good at cutting up," Jeff joked, placing his dough in a bowl and covering it with plastic wrap.

"Haha, I can't contain my laughter," Nick pouted, grabbing an apple from the middle bowl and biting into it. Jeff sighed, knowing he had lost Nick's interest in making pizza. Hoping he could play his cards right, he plopped onto the barstool beside the brunette.

"What's got your goat, Nicky?" he asked, leaning his weight on his elbows as well.

"Nothing's got my proverbial goat, Jeff."

Wow.

Something definitely had his proverbial goat.

Nick rarely called the other boy "Jeff" if he had been called "Nicky". The two would go back and forth with childish nicknames until it grew to a point where it was just sad. Jeff looked at Nick and scanned his expression. Avoiding gaze, huffed cheeks, red ears…he was jealous? No, more like disappointed. Or embarrassed, maybe? It was always easy reading Nick's feelings since they'd been friends for years, but it wasn't so easy translating them.

"Come on, I know you better than that. And you know I won't give till you're all chipper again," Jeff said, nudging Nick. The other took another bite of his apple before sighing.

"I wanna feel important…" to you he added mentally.

Jeff blinked.

"Come again?"

"I wanna do something. You're like super talented and…" Nick trailed off, staring down at the apple in his hands.

He hadn't needed to finish his statement because Jeff knew what was upsetting his friend. One of the things that Jeff knew about Nick was that he was insecure about his talents. Jeff was lucky to have accepting parents that let him be himself, but Nick's parents raised him with certain expectations and were strict about conserving them. He had always strived to please his parents and those around him, rarely ever giving himself the time of day, which caused a deep anxiety to settle within him.

"Nick, seriously. How many times do I have to tell you that between the two of us, you are no doubt better gifted?" Jeff said, smiling warmly. Nick blushed and swiveled in his chair so that he was facing Jeff.

"Your grades are stellar, you play piano, you've got one of the best voices I've ever heard-"

"So do you. And you can cook," Nick whined. Jeff chuckled.

"Yeah, but I can't play the piano like a god," he responded, taking the browning apple from Nick and hopping up. "Now, are you gonna help me make this pizza?"

Nick got out of his chair and walked over to the laid out vegetables. He took his prompt to start cutting them, so he grabbed a knife and a cutting board. Jeff grabbed a pot.

"Make sure to remind me that when the dough rises, you can knead it."

Nick instantly lit up. Aha!

Jeff dug around the cabinets for a top to the pot he pulled out and when he found one, he put a thin layer of water in it.

"Make sure to fold your fingers when you cut," Jeff reminded, setting the water on the stove.

"Do you ever not nag me?" Nick groaned. Seriously, Jeff could be his mom or something. He hummed in reply and started shaking spices into the water - some salt, some pepper, some oregano...

"Ouch!"

Jeff turned when Nick's knife hit the counter. He was nursing a slit finger and making a light hissing noise

"What did I tell you?" Jeff scolded, taking the other boy's hand and pulling him over to the sink, running the cold water and washing the wound out. He then dug around the drawers and pulled out a small antiseptic wipe and a bandaid

"Sorry," Nick laughed as Jeff tended to him. When Jeff put the bandaid on his finger, Nick blushed. Jeff, however, didn't see it since his attention was caught by his ringing phone. He flipped it open to find a text message.

I'm forwarding you Kurt's number - Blaine

Attached was a number that Jeff quickly saved into his phone. He'd have to text Kurt later.

"Jeff, your water is gone. Are you sure you don't need more?" Nick asked, peering into the steaming pot. Jeff appeared beside him after pocketing his phone, the two boys brushing elbows.

"No, you have to put in all the vegetables now. The natural juices will keep them from burning. So keep chopping tomatoes, and I'll get the onions," he said, pulling out another knife and cutting board before expertly dicing onions. Nick stared down at his tomatoes and began cutting them again.

"So just put them in here?" Nick asked, which was pretty much pointless since he dumped the tomatoes in before even finishing his question.

"Yep! You got it," Jeff said, adding his own onions to the mixture. He moved on to cutting up some basil and Nick focused his attention on the pot. Jeff couldn't help but steal a glance over since he had always found Nick's concentration adorable. The way his eyebrows knitted together slightly, and his stare so intent on unraveling whatever was before him. It was that look of pure bewilderment that had Jeff so hooked on the other boy.

"Hey you know that thing where you space out?" Nick started. "Yeah. You're doing it again."

Jeff blinked and focused his attention on partaking in socially understandable conversation instead of zoning out, although he was completely content at just staring at the brunette for the rest of his life.

"So! How about that dough?"

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><p><strong>So what did you guys think of tonight's episode? Geez Darren is so perfect. And Samuel! Wow! I'm glad he's finally in but geez I don't want Rory to go UGH. :P<strong>

**Reviews would be much appreciated~!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Once again, please excuse any wonkiness or typos. working with no beta!**

**Here is chapter 2~! It gets pretty steamy guys sooooo, be prepared for that.**

**You guys can go follow me on Twitter NikoBoussniere, it wouldn't hurt you and you'd get some insight on the story~! **

**Disclaimer: If I owned Glee, we'd be seeing alot more Nick and Jeff.**

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><p>Nick had never noticed until now, but he had realized that Jeff was rarely fully dressed.<p>

He tried to pass it off as him just being comfortable; they had been friends for years. But Nick found it extremely hard to control his wandering eyes when Jeff came out of the bathroom with just a loose towel around his waist, barely covering the essentials and dripping with water.

He was so confused. Was it normal for a straight guy to check out his best friend like that?

Multiple droplets traced trails down his toned chest and Nick visualized pinning him down and chasing the slick trails with his tongue. He marveled at how Jeff's flawless skin glistened with the thin coating of liquid and at the water pooling in the curves of his thin hips right above his happy trail; the blonde hair delving out of the sight of eager eyes.

Nick licked his lips.

"Dude, where's my brush?" Jeff asked, settling the towel low on his waist so he could use both of his hands.

"I-it's….it's, uhm…." His eyes devoured the sight of Jeff's naked torso. "Wha….?

Jeff groaned and snapped his fingers. "Nick! My brush!"

The brunette gestured to their vanity and forced himself to peel his eyes from the boy, not really caring that their dorm was carpeted and Jeff was dripping water everywhere. And his stare didn't go unnoticed.

"Nicky?"

Nick gulped. Something within him snapped and with a pure bolt of nature he opened his mouth and spoke.

"Jeff, come here." He patted the space beside himself and Jeff looked at him in confusion before sitting beside his friend on the bed. Nick took a deep breath and leaned in to kiss Jeff.

The blonde swore his heart stopped.

Nick was kissing him?

But surely enough, neither could ignore the sparks that flew between them. It was an electrifying shock that coursed through unsuspecting veins. It was hot and needy, but perfect all the same. Two pairs of lips moved together in perfect synchronism.

After a few moments, Nick pulled back, staring into Jeff's eyes before realizing what he did.

"Shit…" he muttered.

He was dumb. He was dumb and now Jeff was never going to talk to him and he was going to-

Kiss him again?

Jeff had pulled him into another kiss, their lips moving together languidly as the taller boy took the reins of the kiss, full of passion and fueled by years of unspoken emotion. They kept the contact for a long moment, but stopped when breathing became a thing they needed to do.

"Nick-"

"Ssh."

Jeff bit his lip, blushing and looking down at the towel on his lap. Nick had his eyes closed and was deliberating what to do next before he felt a warm hand on his. He looked up and their lips connected again. Nick decided this was something that he liked a lot as Jeff threaded his fingers through Nick's hair, pulling him closer and deepening the kiss. Nick let out a contented sigh and the blonde took the opportunity to slide his tongue into the brunette's mouth, pressing their two muscles together. Nick groaned as he snaked his arms around Jeff's waist, thoroughly memorizing the other's taste.

"Wait, Nick," Jeff breathed, pulling apart and panting lightly. The kisses trailed across the blonde's jaw line, lapping up the moisture that pooled in his collarbone. The kisses turned into light bites on fleshy skin of Jeff's neck and he groaned.

"Nick!" Jeff gasped, the sensation sending delicious bolts of pleasure through his body. "S-stop," he muttered.

Nick pulled away and looked into Jeff's glazed over eyes. He waited for him to catch his breath, trailing circles over his hips in attempt to distract him from the growing tightness in his jeans.

"I feel weird, I-I'm not wearing anything but a towel," he said, blushing scarlet. The brunette chuckled and crawled onto Jeff's lap, straddling his hips and cupping his face with his hands. He placed gentle kisses on his face; light and feathery.

"So?"

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><p>Now that Nick had time to think, he really had no idea what was happening.<p>

Not even a few hours ago would he even imagine holding pinkies and macking on his best friend.

Well, he would imagine it, but he didn't actually believe it would happen.

He felt complete with Jeff, and he always had. It was as if had been wandering his entire life in search for something and he finally found it. He had never seen Jeff so happy, and the blonde's smile could, as cheesy as it sounded, light up one thousand suns. But the new development raised some questions.

Did this mean that they were dating? All this time, Nick always thought he was straight. All those soirees and mixers put on by his father definitely didn't bore him with all the classy dames hanging around. And he still liked looking at girls. He never really looked at guys. Only Jeff.

So were they friends since Nick wasn't gay? Just friends with benefits?

Nice benefits.

Nick smiled in that realization. Yes. That's what they were. Friends with benefits. A great pal that understood all the sexual frustration of being a single guy in high school and he could release some of the tension with,

It made perfect sense.

"Nicky, c'mon, we have to go to class," Jeff said, tugging the other's hand. Nick's smile grew wider and he stood, following Jeff. Right, class.

Wait, class.

Nick stopped in the doorway and stared at their conjoined hands, earning a confused stare from Jeff. Although they could both feel the chemistry between them, Nick wasn't sure he was ready for everyone to see them together. It might ruin one of their chances for getting a girlfriend. Luckily, Jeff sensed his discomfort and dropped their hands.

"Jeff, I-"

"No, no, it's alright," he said lightly.

Yeah, Jeff was a little hurt, but he was expecting it. Not everything was going to be all sunshine and lollipops right off the bat. Nick was always someone who needed time to adjust, and holding hands n front of everyone might be a little too much too fast. He did, however, give him a peck on those perfect lips. The brunette blushed but kissed him back lightly.

"Shall we get to class, Mr. Duval?"

A smile plastered itself on both boys faces and they walked down the ornately decorated hallways, passing familiar faces but staying in their own conversations; their own world. They luckily had first period together so they accompanied each other to their English class, so close that they occasionally brushed shoulders.

Nick was a beast at English. His brain easily wrapped around languages and arts. He read lightyears past his grade level and made impeccable scores on English tests. He spoke flawlessly and literately, often confusing people he spoke to. His peers and teachers were highly surprised and disappointed that Nick didn't take accelerated classes for English and Language Arts.

He would never tell anyone, but he stayed with the majority of his grade level for Jeff.

The blonde didn't fair so well in language and literature. His mind worked well with numbers, not words. He constantly misspelled words or screwed up his syntax. His teachers urged him to try tutoring so that he could grasp the content better, but it simply wasn't meant to be. It took heaps of work for him to maintain a B+ average.

The two took their seats beside each other in the back of the class, the long table for their row that the four chairs sat under was empty, but soon became littered with students' notebooks and textbooks as peers filed in. The bell rang, calling all the boys to attention as their teacher started preparing for class.

The old woman, Ms. Kingsley, stood. Her gray, peppered hair was pulled back into a tight bun and the pressure looked as if it stretched her wrinkled features, making her facial skin look like stretched rubber. Her piercing green eyes held no spark and her bright red lips notified all her students that she was trying too hard. No one dared to speak out in her class, for she was ruthless and wouldn't hesitate to kick any ne'er do well out of her room.

"Okay students, today we will be translating Shakespeare," she started. Ms. Kingsley shot a glance to Jeff. "It isn't _too_ difficult of an exercise. Hopefully it will help bring up some of your grades."

Jeff stiffened and inhaled sharply. Nick, sensing the stress in the other boy, grabbed his hand under the table. Jeff visibly relaxed with the contact and blushed.

Ms. Kingsley explained the work, allowing them to work in pairs and writing the page numbers on the board. Nick and Jeff never dropped their hands and when the teacher sat back down to her desk, the chatter commenced. Jeff immediately groaned and put his head in his unoccupied hand.

Nick knew the young Sterling was helpless with translating Shakespeare. He couldn't understand 21st century English, let alone 16th century English.

This is why Nick stayed in this English class.

"C'mon Jeffers, I'll help you," Nick said, opening his book and giving Jeff's hand a small squeeze. Jeff smiled sheepishly.

"Thanks Nick, I don't know how I would pass this class without you," he said, also flipping open his book before scowling down at the text of _A Midsummer Night's Dream_. Nick nudged the blonde playfully.

"You wouldn't be able to _survive_ without me."

"You're right."

Nick tried to ignore how his heart decided it was going to jump from his chest with how sincere Jeff sounded. He was serious, though. Jeff didn't know what he would do if he had to go without Nick.

"Alright, so, um, Shakespeare?"

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><p>"Jeff, make sure you come out fully clothed this time," Nick said to the closed bathroom door. He was sitting cross-legged on his bed trying to figure out his Calculus homework.<p>

"Aw, Nicky, you don't like my body?" Jeff whined playfully from across the door. Nick rolled his eyes, not caring that the other couldn't see him.

"It's not that, I just don't think my math homework would like my attention being taken away."

Jeff exited the bathroom, drying his hair. He was shirtless, but he had managed to put on some loose fitting pajama pants. But that torso…

"God, Jeff," Nick groaned, shutting his eyes against the sight and pinching the bridge of his nose. He needed to chase away his dirty thoughts and focus his attention on his homework. Jeff slinked his way over to the brunette and sat on the bed in front of him.

Nick could feel the atmosphere shift as Jeff crawled closer.

"Whatever you're thinking, Nicky, you can do it," he whispered, causing Nick to shudder in anticipation. When he looked up, Jeff connected their lips and moved the textbook from his lap.

"Mmm, homework," Nick mumbled against soft lips. He wanted nothing more than to ravage the other, but Calculus wasn't going to understand itself.

"Warbler practice….was….cancelled," Jeff said between kisses, straddling Nick's waist and pushing his hips flush against the other's, eliciting a small gasp.

That's right. Blaine got a strange phone call from Kurt and took off, effectively cancelling practice for the day, meaning the young Duval had plenty of time for Jeff _and _his homework.

He took the blonde's lithe hips and grinded his own into them, causing Jeff to moan. He clutched Nick tighter, breaking apart the kiss and panting lightly. Nick trailed languid kisses down Jeff's neck and collar. With a shudder, the kisses became gentle bites and sucks, peppering hickeys on the creamy skin.

"Niiiick…" Jeff whined, grinding his hips against the other's, the tightness in his pants growing rapidly, earning moans from both of them. They craved the friction, bodies moving together in a heated dance. Nick could feel Jeff's erection pressed against him and even though the brunette held fast in his claim to liking girls, he couldn't suppress the string of pleasurable noises that fell from his mouth knowing that_ he_ was doing that to Jeff. His hips bucked up into the heat of the blonde's groin and slowly, he lowered him onto his back, settling himself between Jeff's long legs and trailing kisses down his torso. Jeff bit his lip harshly to stifle his whimpers and clutched the sheets when Nick took his nipple into his mouth. He swirled his tongue around the pink nub.

"Nicky, pleeeaasssee," Jeff drawled, his back arching into the sensation of Nick's hot tongue wrapping around his nipple.

The brunette smirked and pulled his mouth away, earning a disappointed noise from the blonde below him. Nick sat up and trailed his hands along the other's torso, humming in content.

He marveled at Jeff's flushed cheeks, his half-lidded eyes and slightly skewed hair, still wet and clinging to his forehead. He watched the blonde's chest heave up and down, his creamy skin marred by little bruises and marks. Nick slid his tongue over his lips.

"Please, what, Jeffie?" Nick asked teasingly, lighting tickling the sooth skin beneath him as his hands went to Jeff's pants, trailing a finger over the painfully obvious lump there. Jeff released a shaky sigh, bucking up for more of the contact he craved. There was something that turned him on by being dominated. He knew he could trust himself and Nick's hands and it drove him crazy.

"Ah…" Nick mumbled, gently palming Jeff through his pants. The other keened and thrusted his hips up into Nick's hand. The aggravator brought their lips together in an open, messy kiss. Tongues slid over teeth and gums; the kiss was sloppy but neither of them cared.

As Jeff tugged harshly on Nick's dark locks, fingers entangled deep in his hair, Nick sunk his hand below the waistband of loose pants and Jeff tried to wriggle his hips in attempt to gain better friction.

"Mmm N-Nick…"

Nick wrapped his lithe fingers over Jeff's member, which was already slick with precum. Jeff moaned loudly and threw his head back, grip on the bed tightening. His toes curled and his back arched and Nick latched his lips onto the other's throat, kissing down the creamy expanse of skin as he began pumping him.

"O-oh god-!" Jeff moaned, rocking his hips in time with Nick's pumps. Nick kissed back up his neck groaning as his lightly sucked the skin behind Jeff's ear, his other hand twisting one of Jeff's nipples.

"F-faster!" Jeff gasped, clutching onto Nick's shoulder tightly. He could feel his erection twitch at Jeff's pleas and the Dalton blazer he wore never felt so constricting. "Undress me…" Nick whispered, trailing his tongue along the shell of Jeff's ear.

He didn't hesitate in guiding his shaky hands to the button of the dark blazer. Nick held up his arms, much to Jeff's chagrin, and the blazer was thrown haphazardly on the floor. He worked his fingers over the buttons to Nick's button-up and quickly had that join the blazer on the floor. His trailed his hands over Nick's torso before having them fumble with his belt and fly before successfully ridding the brunette of his pants. While they were on the topic of undressing, Nick also slid Jeff's sweat pants and boxers off of his hips and eyed his member greedily. Jeff groaned and wriggled under Nick, the desire of needing to be touched engulfing him. Nick caved and pressed his thumb against the slit of Jeff's cock, watching Jeff's expression contort into one of pleasure. Nick loved it.

He began pumping Jeff again, skilled fingers working up and down Jeff's shaft. Hi let out many construed mixtures of moans and whimpers; a strange combination of garbled noises and Nick's name. He could feel a tightening deep in his stomach and it was winding tighter and tighter.

"N-Nick…haah, I-I'm gonna-"

Nick pressed their lips together, silencing the other's moans. He jerked off his companion quicker, urging him closer to the release he begged for as his hips snapped in time with Nick's pumps. The coil that was in the pit of Jeff's stomach snapped and with a loud cry, he came, spewing his milky cum over his own torso and Nick's hand. He shuddered as waves of pleasure washed over him and he rode out his orgasm.

Nick watched him release, loving the way brown pupils rolled back behind fluttering eyelids and how his mouth hung open in a gasping, open-mouth cry when he wasn't moaning in overwhelming pleasure. He loved the way his body writhed as the orgasm gripped his every nerve, and Nick's member throbbed painfully at the sight of all of it.

As the blonde came down from his release, a thin coat of sweat covering his body, Nick crashed their lips together again, kissing him desperately. Jeff wrapped his arms around Nick's neck and when he felt the other's still hard member rub up against his leg, he broke away, pushing lightly on Nick's chest.

Nick pulled back, panting and looking slightly confused, Jeff kissed down to where Nick's boxers were.

"Wha-?"

"Let me suck you off."

Nick flushed scarlet at the request, but his hard-on had become so painful, he wasn't going to pass up the offer. He leaned back against the headboard and Jeff shimmied his boxers from his hips, freeing Nick's pulsating member dripping with precum. Jeff smiled and pressed light kisses to the tip, causing Nick to shudder at the electrifying sensation that coursed through him from it.

"All this from watching?" Jeff cooed, purposefully trailing his warm breath along Nick's member. The brunette's hips bucked forward and he hissed through clenched teeth.

"D-don't tease…"

Jeff took the hint and wrapped his lips around Nick's throbbing cock.

He let out a choked moan, threading his fingers through Jeff's locks. His hips thrusted up into Jeff's mouth, forcing his member deep into the blonde's throat. He choked and pulled away coughing, blinking back the tears that stung behind his eyes.

"S-shit, sorry," Nick muttered. Jeff smiled and once again wrapped his mouth around Nick's length. He loved the taste of the brunette on his tongue and loved the way the thick, hard muscle felt in his mouth. He tried to hollow out his throat and took more of him in, his tongue swirling around the tip as he came up before going back down again. He made sure to trace the vein running up Nick's shaft and earned a shuddering gasp as fingernails scraped against his scalp and he curled his body.

"Oh my god, h-holy _hell_, Jeff," Nick hissed, resisting the urge to thrust up and fuck Jeff's warm mouth. The blonde placed his hands on Nick's hips to steady him as he sucked against the meat in his mouth, bobbing his head up and down and stealing glances at Nick's face every now and then.

He knew that Nick didn't have much longer to last. His eyes were screwed up and his eyebrows were furrowed as his mouth hung slack in silent cries. His cheeks were scarlet and sweat pressed his dark locks against his forehead. It was the perfect expression of pure bliss.

"J-Jeff," he keened, signaling to him that he was close. By the amount of precum coming from his pulsing member, he knew it wouldn't be much longer. He bucked up and Jeff pulled back slightly, causing Nick to come all over Jeff's face. He rode out his orgasm, shuddering and moaning incoherent combinations of Jeff and other expletives. When he fell from his post-orgasmic bliss, he saw the mess on the blonde's face.

"Oh Jeff, I-I'm so sorry I-"

His apology was cut short when his attention flickered to Jeff's pink tongue that slipped out to lick at some of the milky substance on his cheek.

"Mmm," he hummed, closing his eyes, seeming as if he actually savored the taste of Nick's come in his mouth. Nick felt his cock twitch with newfound arousal at the sight. "I don't mind."

Nick leaned over and licked some of his cum off of the blonde's cheek. He winced at the bitter taste but cleared it all from the blonde's visage. Jeff brought their lips together in a loving kiss, different from the fire, passion, and lust from earlier. The salty taste of Nick was on both of their tongues and they entwined their fingers together, their hands fitting together perfectly.

When they broke apart, Jeff tucked his head under Nick's burying his nose into the other's collar. Nick held Jeff with his other arm that wasn't holding the other's hand and rubbed circles into Jeff's back.

"So does this mean you'll help me with my Calculus homework now?"

Jeff snorted and pulled himself out of the embrace, gathering his clothes and cleaning off his chest.

"Absolutely."

* * *

><p>His normal coffee break with Blaine definitely wasn't going to work out today.<p>

Because of course, Blaine traded his shift for time with Kurt.

It usually wouldn't be a problem, but Nick really wanted – no, _needed_ – to talk to Blaine. He hoped he could find out things about himself. Like why he was still attracted to girls but definitely didn't feel at all with any of them anything like he did with Jeff.

He groaned.

"Well, if it isn't one of those charming Dalton boys."

Nick turned to the voice and laid eyes with one of the most beautiful girls he had ever seen. She had cute features with round, bright eyes, and red lips, with dark hair flowing past her shoulders in undefined waves and curls.

Nick smiled. This could help him straighten some things up.

"Well, hello there. What's your name? Can I treat you to some coffee?" he asked. She smiled and a light blush tinted her pale cheeks.

"My name's Harmony, and a chocolate frappuccino would be nice."

* * *

><p><strong>Soooo what'd you think? I'd love to hear your feedback and have some nice comments on what you would like to see~! <strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Well, here's another chapter! I had actually hoped to get this posted on Valentine's Day, since this is like the Valentine's chapter, but things don't always work out as planned. **

**After this chapter, I kinda don't really have much rolling around in my brain right now, so I might go on hiatus, but you guys could always tweet me or message me on Tumblr with some suggestions of things you wanna see! NikoBoussniere and seerofdespair (on tumblr)**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Glee, Finn and Rachel time would be taken up by Kurt and Blaine and shots to Dalton Academy for some Warbler loving. **

* * *

><p>Jeff was the last to trickle into the cafeteria for lunch. His gloomy mood was obvious and all the boys visibly flinched. Well, all the boys except Nick, who was too busy chattering about his new girlfriend to even notice Jeff walked in.<p>

They all watched as the blonde started eating his lunch wordlessly. Ever since Harmony and Nick started dating a few weeks ago, Jeff had been skillfully ignoring to brunette, and when he couldn't get away, he fixed his face in an icy expression and just listened to him about what Harmony wore, or about what Harmony ate. Trent and Thad shot him a worried glance. To be sitting right by Nick and not saying a word was something to be worried about. Especially when it was Valentine's Day and the chemistry between them was practically drowning everyone around them.

"Oh, Jeff! When'd you get here?" Nick chirped, finally noticing that his best friend was sitting beside him.

"A good ten minutes," Jeff replied, picking around his food. His pressed and obviously upset tone caused all the boys to hold their breath in anticipation for a bomb to detonate, but Nick didn't seem to notice.

"Well, Harmony says hi!"

Jeff grimaced at her name. "That's nice of her," he mumbled before sticking a piece of food into his mouth. The sharp words were followed by another silence and Nick pulled out his phone to start texting. Wes was debating just getting up and leaving the tense situation, but David felt brave and broke the silence first.

"So, what are everyone's plans for Valentine's Day?"

"I can tell you what _Blaine's_ plans are," Trent snickered, gesturing to the empty seat at their table. Blaine had gone M.I.A. this morning and everyone only guess he was with Kurt since is was really close to Valentine's Day.

"I've got a date with Harmony," Nick said cheerily. "We're going to go see a movie and then we've got reservations for-"

"You know," Jeff interrupted, slamming his silverware beside his tray loudly. "I'm not really that hungry," he said, giving a strained and empty smile to their table. He stood and was about to leave when Nick grabbed his arm. Everyone noticed the spark that flickered in Jeff's brown eyes at the contact.

"Jeff, I bet you could find a girlfriend in no time, and we could double date! It would make you happy, right?" Nick suggested. Jeff felt his heart fall into the pit of his stomach and he glared at Nick.

He didn't _want_ a girlfriend he _wanted_ Nick. What couldn't he understand?

He ripped his arm away from the other's grip and started to storm off.

"Jeff, are you alright?" Thad asked in concern, standing.

"Peachy." The blonde left the cafeteria.

How could Nick _do _this to him?

Jeff could understand Nick not wanting to come out yet, and he was willing to give him time to adjust, but to just lead him on? Was he not good enough? Was Nick ashamed of him?

Jeff felt his stomach lurch.

He _was_ ashamed of him, wasn't he? All of those conventions finally caught up and Nick realized how dumb it really was and now didn't want to have anything to do with the blonde. He should have guessed it. He was only a half-baked singer that played bass every so often. His family's money was going to his brother's medical bills and he wasn't all that attractive either.

He sauntered back to his room. All he wanted to do was curl into a ball and cry. He loved Nick and he couldn't see that? Apparently, in Nick's mind, it was alright to have Jeff on this little leash and finally take steps in their relationship just to dump it all for some girl. He felt used, naïve, and everything hurt.

He landed on a bed, not really caring which one it was, and curled into a ball. He'd skip his afternoon classes; he didn't feel well at all. He didn't want to go out and have the proof that his love was denied thrown into his face again. All he wanted was Nick and he went and found himself a girlfriend.

"Auuuuuggggghhhh!" he wailed, curling himself around a pillow. Life sucked. And it was in situations like these where he just wanted to dissipate into nonexistence. Something so he wouldn't have to suffer so much. He started humming, a natural reaction to try and calm himself.

"_It's summertime,_" he started, "_and you are all that's on my mind, Everyday_." As his voice became more confident, he sang clearer.

_It seems like we,_

_Could stay up and talk through the night._

_Oh what do you say?_

Jeff chuckled humorlessly to himself as he continued.

_Say you'll stay, hey_

_Hey, stay_

_And I just keep on wishing everyday, hey_

_Hey, stay_

_No more running around, running around_

_Running around_

_When I'm around_

_Just say you'll stay_

He dropped off as tears streamed down his face and his voice cracked. He couldn't push himself to sing anymore. There was just too much pain and he couldn't handle fell asleep like that. Curled up with tears streaming down his face.

* * *

><p>"Dude, what's wrong with Jeff?"<p>

Nick didn't hear the question. He was too busy staring where the boy had just been a few moments ago.

He wanted to hug him. He wanted to kiss away all of his pain and tell him it was okay. Both of their hearts were hurting, which confused Nick, but he had no idea what to do.

He had started dating Harmony thinking it would help him clear up what was going on and to solve the little sexuality crisis, but it only made things muddier. Sure, he was into Harmony. She was beautiful, dynamic, and had a wonderful voice. She excited Nick and he wanted to be in her company, but it lacked all the emotion and the ease that he had with Jeff. It was too confusing and he felt like the protagonist of some convoluted, fictional story.

"So where do you think Blaine's at? Honestly?" Wes asked the group, choosing to put the Jeff drama behind them for now.

"I honestly believe he's with Kurt, serenading him at every hallway turn," Trent said dramatically. David rolled his eyes. "Or he's out making some preparations for a big date night," he offered.

"Speaking of date night," Thad piped in. "What are your plans with Olivia, David?"

Nick watched the interaction in glum. He hadn't replied to Harmony yet and he didn't really feel up to it. He was worried about Jeff. He knew leaving him alone for too long would be bad, but maybe the blonde needed some breathing room and some time to think.

Nick sighed and got up to dump his unfinished lunch.

"I'm gonna get to class."

Everyone looked at the brunette skeptically. Since when did Nick go to Calculus early?

"Um, alright. See you in art," Wes mumbled, watching Nick nod and walk away.

"What's caught up his ass?" Thad asked when Nick was out of earshot. Trent pointed off in the direction that Jeff had left in not that long ago.

"More like what _isn't_," he said. "Ten bucks says those two have got something and Nick went and screwed it up with Melody or whatever."

"Trent, believing that two people who have definitely been straight to all of our knowledge have a relationship is preposterous. You musta done lost yo mind," David added, the last part causing a few to snicker.

"That's just because your gay-dar is off. I knew Blaine liked boys from day one and none of you guys believed me," Trent added, crossing his arms and huffing. "I'm right, just you wait and see."

* * *

><p>Nick lingered in his Calculus class and watched as boys filed in, waiting for the one person he hoped to see. However, when the bell rang and Jeff hadn't shown, Nick's worry skyrocketed.<p>

Jeff would never miss Calculus. It was the only class where he could dominate the brunette in skill.

"Mr. Sterling is absent?" Ms. Caldwell, their young teacher, said with an upset tone lacing her voice. She glanced at Nick, who she knew was always attached to the blonde's hip. He shook his head.

"Well, that's unfortunate," she sighed. She pulled out her book and walked over to the whiteboard. "Well let's get started on the lesson."

Nick tried to understand, but without Jeff beside him mumbling explanations and breaking it down for him, he couldn't grasp a thing. It also didn't help that his attention was preoccupied with the particular blonde headed boy.

The class passed quickly and Nick was still obviously worried about Jeff. He decided to check in on him; he could afford to be a little late for art. Mr. Windham loved him.

His first instinct was to check their room, and he quickly entered his dorm through the halls' class swapping calamity. He walked up the quite halls, listening to his footsteps ring throughout the empty building. He walked through carpeted hallways and opened the door to their room when he got their. As expected, Jeff was sitting there curled into a ball and hugging a pillow.

Wait, that was Nick's pillow and Jeff was asleep on Nick's bed.

The brunette blushed and he closed the door silently.

"Jeff?" he called, attempting to rouse the boy from his sleep. He stirred a little. He walked over and sat on the edge of the bed, nudging Jeff, earning a light groan.

"Jeffie, come on. You have class," Nick said, brushing a hand through his hair. Jeff whined indignantly and sat up, rubbing sleep from his eyes and yawning.

"Nickyyy," he whined softly, wrapping his arms around the brunette and nuzzling into his side. This was something Nick loved. It was adorable how cuddly Jeff was when he was waking up or falling asleep.

"Class, Jeff," Nick reminded, carding his hand through blonde locks. Jeff stayed silent, their breaths mingling as the only sound in the room.

"Nick?" Jeff asked after a few moments of silence.

"Mmhmm?"

"What am I to you?"

Nick had to think that over himself. What was Jeff to him? What were _they_?

"You're my best friend."

No. That didn't sit right in Nick's stomach.

"A best friend that you kiss and get off to?" Jeff pondered aloud. Nick let out a breathy laugh from the absurdity of it. It sounded pretty strange worded like that.

"I guess not…"

Jeff unhooked himself and Nick felt cold without the contact.

"Why are you dating Harmony?" he asked, his hazel eyes staring at Nick, searching his expression for the answers. The look he was giving him was serious. He needed to know.

"W-why are you asking?" Nick asked, shamefully looking down at his lap.

"Because I love you."

The statement came out as a surprise to both of them. Jeff didn't know he could say it that easily and Nick felt his chest tighten, heat rushing to his cheeks. Now he knew he definitely owed Jeff an explanation, even if he couldn't word one that.

"I like spending time with both of you," Nick said, clutching his chest. "But…I'm really confused." He sighed and the next part came out as a whisper. "I don't even know if I'm gay, Jeff."

Although it was only a whisper, Jeff heard it. He felt his heart shatter, knowing that there were probably no romantic inclinations that were reciprocated. But Jeff was still going to try, just in case there were. He put his hand on Nick's.

"No one cares about your label here, Nick. You love who you love and that's all there is to it," he said softly, masking his inner panic well. Nick rested his head on Jeff's shoulder.

"I know. I like her a lot but…" He bit his lip and Jeff squeezed his hand, urging him to continue. "I really like you too, and I don't want to ruin things between us."

Jeff closed his eyes, blinking back the tears that threatened to spill over.

This is what love was, right? Being grateful for any amount of affection that's given to you and simply wanting to be in the other's company. Some people didn't even have that much, and Jeff felt so greedy and so terrible for being so upset. If Nick wouldn't have his heart, he should be happy with the fact that he still wanted his friendship.

"I understand," he said, standing up and leaving a confused Nick sitting on their bed. He would just have to lock away his emotions for times when he was alone. "But what I don't understand is why you let me miss Calculus."

* * *

><p>"I love the soundtrack they set! It was brilliant!"<p>

Nick smiled sheepishly at Harmony's exuberance. She was really intimidating when excited. They were on their way to their Valentine's dinner and were just leaving the theatre when Harmony took Nick's hand and smiled at him.

It was now February 14th, only a handful of days since he and Jeff had their heart-to-heart talk and Jeff confessed his love for him. If he had thought Jeff was ignoring him before, then he was definitely being ignored now. Jeff didn't even show up for classes that they shared and was never in the dorm room. Nick would see him on occasion in the hallways but when he tried to call after him, he would run away. Nick never knew he could feel so hurt and betrayed by such a simple action.

"Thanks for taking me out. That was really sweet," she said, giving his hand a light squeeze. Nick noticed how her hand seemed too small and a little too pudgy in his. They just didn't fit right.

"No problem! It's my pleasure," he said, trying to shake off the uncomfortable feeling and giving her hand a small squeeze in return as they entered the lobby. Nick laughed and they barely noticed the peeved blonde waiting for them.

Barely.

"Jeff! What are you doing here?" Nick said, automatically excited and happy to see his best friend after so long, even though it seemed Jeff wasn't so happy to see him.

"Hello Nick." He turned his gaze to the girl. "Harmony"

Nick pursed his lips. Why was Jeff being so rude to Harmony? The blonde was obviously irked by her prescence and Nick just wanted his girlfriend and his best friend to get along even if said best friend was in love with- oh.

_Oh_.

Suddenly, Nick felt very awkward and embarrassed. How did he not notice that Jeff would be set off by a _girlfriend_? He felt so stupid. Now everything made sense. He knew why Jeff was ignoring him and why he was so agitated. He had made Jeff suffer though a good couple of weeks of his nonstop talk of Harmony and expected him to be okay with it. He had put Jeff through all of that and he stayed until he just couldn't bear it any longer.

"Um, d-do you need something?" Nick asked nervously, knowing this was just the calm before the storm.

"Oh no. Just my best friend," Jeff said giving a pointed glare to Nick. It softened, however, when he took the brunette in, and he walked a few paces to be closer to him. "I wanted to spend Valentine's Day," he started, and Nick held his breath and brown eyes met his, "With you."

"Excuse me?" Harmony asked, looking between the two in confusion. Jeff glared at her, any tenderness he had moments before was lost.

"You're a thief," he spat, causing the two of them to stare at the blonde in shock.

"Jeff! You're being rude!" Nick chided and Jeff furrowed his eyebrows.

"So are you," he retorted angrily. Nick shut his mouth and quelled his arguments.

Nick _was_ being rude. He had lead Jeff while parading around with his girlfriend. It was just salt in the wound.

"Kiss her."

Nick gaped at him.

"Jeff!"

"Kiss. Her," he commanded sternly. Nick could see that Jeff was going to hold steadfast. He could see it in his eyes. The brunette begrudgingly turned to Harmony and scratched his head nervously. He and Harmony hadn't kissed yet and now it was being forced upon them.

"Can I…?"

Harmony answered his question by leaning in and pressing her lips against his. She was daring for sure. The kiss was soft and gentle, but Nick focused too much on the actual physical contact of their lips and it was kind of awkward. They pulled away a little too quickly and Nick was blushing more out of embarrassment than any romantic rush.

"Now," Jeff said, uncrossing his arms and relaxing his shoulders. "Kiss me." Nick took a step back.

"We're in _public_!" Nick hissed. Harmony seemed to be more intrigued by some secret unfolding before her than the fact that some guy was attempting to steal away her boyfriend.

"So?" Jeff took tentative steps forward and grabbed the brunette's wrists. He leaned in but stopped short of kissing him. Nick, without even thinking, closed the gap between them. It was electrifying.

A tingle shot up Nick's spine and his heart leapt as he deepened the kiss, his mind shutting down all coherent thoughts as his heart and body exulted in return of physical contact from Jeff that they craved so dearly. Jeff pulled away much too quickly for Nick's liking, but when his brain started to kick start and he remembered where he was, he blushed to the tips of his ears. He looked back at Harmony, who was smiling and then he returned his gaze to Jeff.

"Jeff, I-I…"

The blonde pivoted and stormed out of the lobby before Nick could get in another word.

"Jeff, wait!" He went to chase him, but Harmony held him back.

"Give him some time. He needs to cool off," she said, her red lips stretched in an easy smile.

"Harmony, I'm so sorry-"

She held up her hand and cut him off, shaking her head.

"You love him. I know. I didn't really think you were that into me," she said.

Harmony didn't even seem upset about it at all. Nick smiled.

"Thanks…I was just really confused about a lot of things," Nick admitted, feeling the odd awkwardness between him and Harmony disappear. She let out a loud laugh.

"Nick please! You can _smell_ the gay on you."

Deep in Nick's heart, he knew he had made a mistake in dating Harmony, but not by meeting her. It was all just a big misunderstanding. Nick Duval liked boys.

And he was happy about it.

* * *

><p>Jeff pulled out his phone with shaky hands and dialed a familiar. He had no idea how he managed to compose himself until he entered his dorm at Dalton, but whatever defense mechanism he put up had shattered.<p>

He was back in _his _room. The room that Nick stayed in, who was so dumb to realize he didn't even need a girlfriend if he wanted love.

"_Hey Jeff, I'm kinda b-_"

"Blaine!" Jeff cried, happy that the other answered his phone. Wait.

He was busy?

Oh right, Valentine's Day with Kurt.

"S-sorry…"

"_Hey Jeff, listen-_"

"I've ruined your d-date haven't I? Geez, I'm sorry," he mumbled. He was just screwing up everything today.

"_No, no, I'm with Kurt right now_," he heard Blaine's voice buzz over the receiver.

Blaine would be there to listen. He started babbling and the walls came down and tears spewed forth from his words.

"He doesn't u-understand and I'm just s-so _sick_ of it! And I _tried_ to support him, b-but I just want him to _look_ at me!"

"_I'll tell David. He'll understand. You can stay in my room until I get back, alright?_"

"And it hurts! I love him so much!"

Silence came through the receiver and Jeff continued to sob.

"_I know you do, and it's hard, I know. But I'm pretty sure he's just going through a tough time right now. He treasures you too much to not love you back,_" Blaine said. Jeff nodded before he realized Blaine couldn't see him.

"Y-yeah…"

"_Alright, well I'll see you later._"

Jeff heard a light shuffling on the other end and he only guessed it was Kurt moving. He said bye and shuffled his way gloomily to Blaine's room. He knew David was out, and that was Blaine's roommate, so Jeff would be alone, but as long as he didn't have to stay in that room that would remind him of his unreciprocated love. The boys passing him in the hallway were smart enough to not say anything to the blonde as he passed.

When Jeff got to Blaine's room, he plopped down on his bed, immediately curling himself into a ball. The scent of Blaine was weird when it was surrounding him. It was like he was forced into the wrong set of clothes. It was just strange Jeff pushed down the feeling and waited.

He waited for something to happen. For Blaine to come through the door, or for Nick to call him.

Just something.

* * *

><p>Nick dialed for the 6th time before hearing the voice mail for the other phone. He was distraught and thus he was blowing up another phone with calls when he usually capped it at three. He ran an irritated hand through his mussed hair, making sure to keep the other one tight on the steering wheel.<p>

How was it possible for one human being to be so _stupid_?

How had he not realized that all of the feelings he was feeling for Jeff were explained as love? But it wasn't just love, for that word lost its meaning with its constant use. Maybe that's why he couldn't see it at first.

But he could tell now. It was like a train hitting him. And now that he had realized, he needed to let Jeff know and apologize for the hell he'd put him through, but Jeff wasn't answering his phone and Nick was worrying again.

Had he pushed him too far?

He shook off the thought. It was not the time for doubts. He dialed someone else's number and listened to it ring.

"_Yes?_"

"Blaine! Oh god, I've really screwed up," Nick wailed, speeding through a red light. Blaine sighed on the other line.

"_Yeah, I know. Jeff called._" Nick felt his heart sink.

"That means he _is_ ignoring me…I _really_ screwed up," he muttered, resisting the urge to his forehead on his steering wheel.

"_I don't think he's _ignoring_ you. He just needs some time, Nick. He's pretty beat up about it…_"

"Where is he? I _really_ need to talk to him."

There was a lull in the conversation as silence filled it.

"_I don't know-_"

"_Please_!"

He couldn't believe Blaine was doing this to him! Jeff was his best friend, and although Nick had done a shitty job holding up his end of the bargain, Blaine knew that. Frustrated tears found their ways stinging at Nick's eyes.

"_Nick-_"

"Blaine, _please_. I'm a wreck. I fucked up and now he's mad and I love him," Nick croaked. He paused after saying the last words, startled by how easy they came. "I love him but I've hurt him because I'm stupid and I have to be there for him."

Blaine let out another sigh.

"_Nick, I really think he wants to be alone_," he said. Something snapped inside Nick with that comment.

"But he doesn't!" he shouted. "I don't know how it works with you and Kurt, but Jeff just hurts in silence and tells everyone he's fine and that he just wants to be left alone but-" He paused slightly. He never got irritable with anyone, let alone his companions, but he needed Jeff and he needed to make sure he was okay. "When Justin was admitted into the hospital he told everyone he wanted to be alone, but he didn't!"

There was another silence.

"_He should be in my dorm room_," Blaine answered. Nick heaved a sigh of relief. It was a good thing that Jeff was at Dalton since he was headed there in the first place.

"Thank you, Blaine," Nick sighed, a lot calmer and ended the call, pressing his phone back into his pocket. He used one arm to wipe away the tears that had fallen_._

His car was barely parked and off before the brunette was racing into the dorm, scaling the steps in record times and reaching Blaine's room winded. He opened the door, still trying to catch his breath and saw Jeff curled into another ball on Blaine's bed.

"Oh, Jeff…" he mumbled, effectively shocking the blonde out of his stupor. Jeff gasped lightly.

So many questions raced through his mind. Why was he here? What was he doing? Didn't he have a date with Harmony?

Nick slowly closed the space between them and sat on the bed. Why did this feel like déjà vu?

"Jeff, I'm so-"

"It's fine," he said, abruptly cutting Nick off. The brunette knew that was a bad sign.

Jeff tried to tunnel his hurt and fury at Nick and tear him with biting words. But he couldn't. He couldn't bring himself to hate Nick. It was impossible.

"I broke up with Harmony."

That statement caused Jeff to actually look at Nick.

"Why? She made you happy," Jeff grumbled. Nick snorted in reply.

"I _thought_ she made me happy. I never loved her," he said, staring into Jeff's eyes for a long moment. Jeff felt his face heat up as Nick continued.

"And I was so blinded by being what people expected to realize that there was nothing romantically between us. When I kissed her…" he paused, gauging Jeff's reaction. The blonde tried to subtly swallow around the lump in his throat, heart pounding in his chest.

"I didn't feel anything," Nick finished. Jeff looked back down.

"How did you not feel anything when your lips were making physical contact?" he said softly, slightly joking.

"I just didn't. It was actually kinda gross. No. Like _really_ gross, and awkward. There wasn't anything…" Nick trailed off, holding his hands in front of him and clenching them as if he was trying to grab onto a thought. His eyebrows furrowed in concentration, but when he couldn't find and words, he just left it.

Jeff pulled himself up to sit cross-legged and was hugging Blaine's pillow to his chest. He'd rather it was Nick instead, but he was still trying to hold his ground in this argument.

"But when I'm with you," he started, voice hollowed out dreamily. "It's like there's something that clicks into place that's missing when we're apart and it's calming and exciting at the same time." His tone made Jeff's heart skip. He knew that tone that Nick was using, and he took on that tone when he was talking about things he loved, and right now, he was talking about _him_.

"My mind just thought it was because we were best friends, that there was no going past that." He looked over at Jeff and took the other's hand, bringing it to his lips and kissing his knuckles tenderly. "My heart knew where it belonged, and I'm so sorry that I only realized it just now," he said, continuing to pepper kisses over Jeff's fingers. He outstretched his hand, delicately pressing his lips to his palm and inner wrist. Jeff shuddered in delight at the attention and let out a breathy sigh. Nick hummed and ceased his little shows of adoration, causing a pout to form on the blonde's face.

"I love you, Jeff," Nick said. His words rang out loud and clear even though he spoke softly. Jeff could feel the tears welling in his eyes and he bit them back. He never thought he'd be able to hear those three words.

"I love you too, Nick," he whispered, finally feeling lighter having his feelings returned with no worry. He was so exhausted from jumping through all those hoops. He figured he could drop being mad at Nick and scooted over beside him, lying down and resting his head in the brunette's lap. Nick chuckled softly and threaded his fingers through golden locks.

"Does this mean you'll forgive me?" Nick asked hopefully. Jeff hummed.

"Only if you promise to stay forever."

Nick rolled his eyes. "Of course," he answered, and Jeff contemplated more conditions.

"We never sleep on a fight."

"We already don't," Nick pointed out, before thinking it over. "Well, _usually_ don't."

"If there's anything bothering us, we speak up," Jeff said, not wanting any more misunderstandings to screw up their relationship. Nick pressed a quick kiss to Jeff's temple, already feeling giddy at being able to do so.

"Absolutely."

"And lastly," Jeff said, rolling so that he was looking into Nick's warm eyes. "We spend holidays together. Even if it constitutes going out of town."

Nick looked as if he rolled the thought around in his head. "Does today count? We still have time for Valentine's Day," he said, a warm smile spreading across his features.

Jeff smiled. "What do you have in mind?" Nick pondered on that question a little.

"We could go to dinner, then come back and have a bath before heading to bed?" he suggested, cheeks coloring a bit at the prospect of bathing together.

"Sounds perfect. But only if we get to cuddle when we go to sleep."

Nick kissed Jeff, sweet and gentle. "Absolutely."

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you guys liked! I know it seems like their fight was only like, 2 seconds long, but if you read through it actually says Jeff was ignoring him and being stand-offish for weeks. I just couldn't let him sit there and hurt! <strong>

**Also duh, Song is not by me. It's "Say You'll Stay" by R5. I thought it would be appropriate to put in. Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I've obviously been feeling very "Niff"ty today (haha, get it? I made a pun). Here's another chapter! I got comments on how the last one was a bit rushed, so I'm happy to say that it will be moving a bit slower!**

**I don't really have alot to say I don't think! **

**Disclaimer: I wish I owned Glee.**

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><p>It was nearing the end of February and tension was rising within the Warblers. Today particularly was off to a bad start.<p>

"Where is Warbler Blaine? We are now thirty seconds behind schedule!" Wes complained, glancing back at his watch every few seconds. Even David and Thad looked exhausted from the Asians dramatics under their own expressions of worry and stress.

Nick and Jeff were sitting together on one of the loveseats, trying to drown out all of the commotion arising around them.

"Last time anyone heard of him, he was supposed to be seeing Kurt," a voice piped. Alexander, one of the newer Warblers that no one had noticed, effectively quieted down the loud chattering to a soft murmur. Jeff made a mental note to talk to him later. Anyone who wasn't Wes with his gavel that could quiet the Warblers down so quickly deserved some recognition. Or maybe it was just because he seemed to know about Blaine's personal life when no one even knew who _he_ was.

Jeff just brushed that off.

"Wanky," Trent huffed, placing his chin in his hand as he waited impatiently for Warblers practice to start.

Blaine took that moment to walk into the room.

"Hi, guys! Sorry I'm late, but-"

"Sorry? We have Regionals approaching and then our annual trip to Dallas in right around the corner! We have no time for you to be skipping out on practice!" Wes scolded, angrier due to the fact he was stressed.

"Yes, yes, I know, but I'd like to say something before we start," Blaine said hopefully, looking a little nervous, which was strange because Blaine was never nervous when it came to the Warblers.

"The floor is yours," David said calmly before Wes could disagree with him.

Blaine smiled wide and looked around the room at everyone.

"Guys, I would like to introduce someone who is hoping to join us as one of the Warblers," he said happily. Commotion started up again and Wes called the room back to attention with a few beatings of his gavel.

"How is he going to learn all the steps before Regionals?" Jeff asked under his breath to no one in particular. Nick shrugged in response.

"Must be a real idiot if he thinks he'll be able to catch up with everything this late in the year," he answered, smiling over at Jeff. Their eyes lingered on each other for a second longer than they should have before they broke their gaze, blushing as they tried to focus on anything but their beating hearts.

When they looked up, they saw a familiar chestnut-haired boy enter the room, clutching the strap of his satchel.

Jeff and Nick's jaws dropped when they saw him.

"Guys, I would like to introduce Kurt Hummel."

More commotion ensued.

Suddenly, all of Blaine's colleagues understood why he was being so dodgy with talking and meeting them. Pretty much no one had really seen him for an extended period of time since before Valentine's Day, but now they knew he was probably busy driving back and forth to Lima and making sure everything was squared away on the Dalton end for Kurt's transfer.

"Guys! Calm down!" Thad called over the ruckus. The boys were seriously antsy this time of year and seemed to break out into noisy chatter whenever was possible. "What will you be singing for your audition piece?" he said, gentler, turning to the newcomer with a smile.

Kurt shot a glance around the room, noticing some faces and smiling at them.

"I was planning on singing a song from one of my all-time favorite artists," he said happily, grinning from ear-to-ear. Thad and David nodded to him and he took a deep breath to begin singing.

_Say, wasn't that a funny day?_

Many of the Warblers recognized the song as one of Blaine's originals. It was adorable, and Nick and Jeff whipped their gaze to Blaine, who was staring at Kurt in awe. He obviously didn't see this one coming.

_Gee, you had a funny way—a way about you._

_A kind of glow of something new._

Jeff, feeling gutsy and supportive of his friends, started humming along, adding his vocals to background sound. Nick joined next, following Jeff's lead, and soon all the Warblers familiar with the song were singing.

_Sure—I'll admit that I'm the same._

_Another sucker for a game kids like to play,_

_And the rules they like to use._

_Don't you want the way I feel?_

_Don't you want the way I feel?_

_Don't you want the way I feel for you?_

The remaining Warblers that hadn't been subject to Blaine's original music had caught the tune of the song and had joined in. Blaine looked so close to tears and couldn't contain the wide grin that spread across his face as Kurt turned to look at him.

Even Thad, Wes, and David were singing, and they were not supposed to show any bias.

_The sun: telling me the night is done._

_Well I refuse to let it stop our fun._

_Close your eyes—we'll make it dark again_

Jeff chanced a glance at Nick, blushing lightly when he saw the brunette's eyes on him as well.

_And kiss; there's a thought, so how 'bout this?_

_Let's pretend that both our lips are made of candy._

_After all, we need sweets every now and then._

All eyes were watching Kurt as he continued to dance his gaze over Blaine. All eyes, of course, except Nick and Jeff, who were getting lost in the lyrics and staring at each other.

_Don't you want the way I feel?_

_Don't you want the way I feel?_

_Don't you want the way I feel for you?_

As the Warblers got into the spirit of camaraderie, Nick found himself closer and in laughing spirits with Jeff. Most of the others were too busy being swept up into Kurt's melodic vocals and didn't notice the slight brushing of fingertips that may or may not be a bit too intimate for just friendship.

_Here we are: two strangers in a very different place._

_Who knows what could happen to us next?_

_Here we are with nothing but this little spark._

_It's too cold outside to lay this fire to rest._

Nick could feel his heart pounding in his chest as he stared at Jeff. The intimacy of their stare was palpable but the others around them were too absorbed in singing along to Kurt, who was obviously serenading Blaine.

_Go? How so very apropos:_

_A goodbye just as soon as I said "Hello."_

_Well alright, I'll see you later._

_It's true: it's just a fantasy for two._

_But what's the difference if it all could have been true?_

_I guess this is better._

Jeff couldn't help but feel the words hit home and looked down bashfully, still humming lightly under his breath.

_But don't you want the way I feel?_

_Don't you want the way I feel?_

_Don't you want the way I feel for you?_

"I do…" Jeff muttered breathlessly.

_Oh, don't you want the way I feel?_

_Don't you want the way I feel?_

_Don't you want the way I feel for you?_

_Don't you want the way that I feel for you?_

The boys all broke out into whoops and catcalls, cheering for Kurt and giving him a standing ovation. Jeff and Nick broke their gaze and coughed awkwardly, clapping along with the others.

"Warbler Kurt, I'm pleased to welcome you into the group," Wes said, his mood considerably lightened, as he made it official with the pounding of his gavel.

* * *

><p>Nick sighed in content as he curled closer to Jeff in the warm water, his back pressed snugly against Jeff's front. Behind closed doors, they were very comfortable with tender kisses and snuggles. Earlier that day they had both apologized for nearly slipping up at Warblers practice with showing everyone that they were more than just friends. They had agreed not to reveal their relationship until they were both ready, and although Jeff was ready, Nick was nervous to come out to everyone. However, they were both getting antsy about keeping such a huge secret, and it was brewing confusing feelings in Nick. Jeff would just kiss his cheeks and tell him he'd wait for him to be comfortable.<p>

Nick was shaken from his train of thought when he felt kisses being pressed upon his back. He hummed as Jeff kissed down his shoulder blades.

"Mmm, Jeffie stop. You know what that does to me," Nick mumbled, nodding his head back to rest on Jeff's shoulder. The blonde giggled and wrapped his arms around Nick's torso, pulling him closer. Nick relished in the feeling of skin on skin contact with Jeff.

"I know, but I can't help it," he said, resting his chin on Nick's shoulder. Nick grinned.

Even though he knew Jeff better than anybody, he couldn't understand him sometimes. He seemed so eager for Nick to open up to everyone and be free with their relationship and with all the physical contact, but he was really dodgy when it came to going anywhere past than heated makeout sessions. The brunette was fin with chalking it up to Jeff just not being ready for something like that, however, they had that _one_ encounter, meaning that wasn't the case. It was confusing to Nick, and he tried to ignore the sexual frustration that was building up, because no matter how afraid he was of coming out, he knew he loved Jeff and wanted a relationship with him. It didn't help that he was a teenage boy, still trying to get a handle on his hormones, and he was taking baths with his extremely attractive boyfriend.

"Hey, turn around and let me wash your hair," Jeff ordered, mumbling into the soft skin of Nick's neck. The brunette groaned and complied, keeping himself between the other's legs and just facing him instead. Jeff reached over and grabbed the bottle of shampoo and Nick marveled at how supple muscles rippled beneath his creamy skin. The blonde worked the substance into Nick's dark locks, both humming some song that they couldn't name for the life of them.

"If you don't close your eyes, shampoo will get in them," he teased, gently massaging Nick's scalp.

"Just keep doing that with your hands and I'll be fine," Nick purred, closing his eyes and becoming engrossed with the feeling of Jeff's fingers in his hair. The blonde blushed a little but continued lathering Nick's hair with shampoo and for a while, the only sounds in the bathroom were the sloshing of water as one of them moved.

"When do we get off for spring break?" Nick started, choosing to strike up small conversation.

Jeff shrugged. "Dunno, we leave for Dallas as few days before then though," he continued, brushing behind Nick's ears. The brunette shuddered.

"I almost forgot. Who else are we sharing a room with?" Nick asked, cuddling into the comfort of Jeff's hand.

"Dunno. Maybe Trent and Blaine," the other started before grinning wide. "Unless Kurt goes. Then we'll share with Kurt and Blaine."

Nick chuckled.

"Rounding up all the gays in one place. What do you want? A foursome?" he joked, before blinking open one eye to catch Jeff's expression. It was priceless and he was glad he checked.

"Hey!"

"When can I rinse?" Nick asked, bringing the conversation back to a topic that wouldn't fluster Jeff so much. Said boy rolled his eyes and took his hands away.

"Lean back," he instructed, pushing Nick down on his back and sitting up on his knees to accommodate to the size of the tub. He tried to ignore the suggestive growl that resounded from Nick's throat.

Nick dipped his head back and let Jeff help him rinse out all the shampoo. The blonde tried not to pay attention to the fact he was straddling his boyfriend's waist while they were both naked. It was just a bath.

Blowing bubbles in the water, Nick smiled playfully up at Jeff, his hair now slick and shiny as he sat up. Jeff felt his breath hitch as Nick wiped excess water from his face. He leaned against the rim of the tub after completing the task, Jeff still straddling him.

Nick giggled and slicked his hair back, the dark locks staying put on his head.

"Guess who I am," he snickered, and Jeff splashed him.

"Gee, I didn't know I was bathing with Blaine Anderson," he exclaimed, laughing with Nick. The shorter boy ran his fingers through Jeff's hair, styling it a certain way with intense concentration. It was that expression that was so adorable and Jeff loved it.

"Oh, so I'm Kurt now?" the blonde said with a giggle, looking at his reflection in the water. Nick kissed his nose.

"C'mon, hand me that shampoo so I can wash your hair, Jeffers," Nick teased, reaching out for the bottle from his lounging position against the tub. Jeff complied and ducked down, resting his head on the brunette's chest. He felt the vibrations of his chuckle reverberate in Nick's chest and he smiled as hands went to wash his hair.

Nick's skilled, artist's fingers worked wonders at massaging Jeff's scalp and the blonde hummed happily, getting lost in the feeling of fingers running concentric patterns on his head. The sound of moving water quieted and Jeff focused on the slight heave of Nick's chest as he breathed.

It was so very relaxing.

"Hey, don't fall asleep in the bath or you'll drown," Nick whispered, trying not to laugh at the other boy.

"You won' led me druwn," he slurred.

"Yeah, yeah, but you better get up. I fully expect a body scrub from you Mr. Sterling."

Jeff wrapped his arms around Nick's torso and snuggled closer. Yeah, he was falling asleep.

"Jeeeffff," Nick whined. "We can't cuddle in the _bath_," he said, halting the scrub of the shampoo on Jeff's blonde head.

Jeff hummed in response, not even hearing what the other boy was saying.

Great.

This was going to be a long bath and Nick wasn't getting his body scrub.

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><p><strong>So what did you think? Please review and leave any comment, suggestions, or things you'd like to see happen in later chapters!<strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Well hello lovely readers! How are you all doing?** **I would like to give a shout-out to some of my special readers! Rawr413, theonewiththelongbrownhair, Tokala, gleekforever63, Eliros, and Andromeda Rae Borealis! I constantly get reviews from them and they make me super happy! Keep on rocking guys! **

**But of course, I love all my readers~! I give you all hearts~~!**

**Oh my goodness guys, I went to go see the Hunger Games! urehrehrehregeugeruhwrjhre It was spectacular! They didn't get everything right but for a movie adapted from a book, it was pretty swell!**

**So! Next chapter! Sorry it's taken a little bit to update, been so crazy with my school's spring musical revue (I'm in 7 numbers :P) and choir and then lots of family drama. -le sigh- But I'm back writing! So I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I only own Alexander! :P**

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><p>"No."<p>

"Please forgive me."

"No."

Nick was bundled up in his bed, trying to ignore how nasally his voice sounded. He pouted and Jeff rested his chin on the brunette's bed, not having left his bedside yet this morning.

"Jeff, I have a cold. I can't sing with the Warblers today, and Regionals is-" he paused so that he could sneeze, "-coming up! All because you wanted to take a nap in the bath last night," he grumbled, wrapping himself more in the comforter. He had woken up feeling as if a train had hit him. He had a bad cough, runny nose, and a fever that Nick swore was battling temperatures hotter than Hell fire. Jeff blushed.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you sick," Jeff said, still pleading with the bedridden boy. Nick sighed.

He couldn't argue when Jeff begged.

"Alright, alright…" he broke out into a coughing fit and when he calmed down, he continued. "But you aren't off the hook, Sterling."

Jeff whooped with joy and jumped up excitedly.

"Now, go put on your uniform before you're late to class," he instructed, causing the blonde's attitude to visibly dampen.

"How am I supposed to deal with English alone?" he pouted. Nick only smirked at the pain in his voice.

"Should have thought about that while you were falling asleep in the tub," he huffed. Jeff groaned. Seriously, sometimes Nick was so childish. "And you better cook me some soup for dinner. And not the canned kind. I want it homemade," he demanded.

Jeff couldn't help but smile at the request. He knew Nick adored his cooking and it made him so happy. With a few steps, he closed the distance between them and pressed their lips together.

"After class, I promise," he said with a wide smile before pecking Nick on the lips again.

"Speaking of class-"

"I know, I know," came the defeated reply. "Go get my uniform, go to class, blah, blah, blah," he repeated, walking over to their closet to get his clothes. Nick smiled as Jeff started pulling his clothes off. The blonde caught his gaze and rolled his eyes.

"Voyeur."

Nick's grin grew.

"Can't help that I have a smoking hot boyfriend," he said suggestively. Even with a cold, he could pull off a cheeky attitude, regardless of how clogged his sinuses were. Jeff checked himself over in the mirror when he finally pulled on his blazer, running a hand through his hair and messing with his cuffs.

"You look fine, dear," Nick teased from where he was sitting on the bed. Jeff shot him a glance through the mirror and saw Nick's smile grow.

"Well then," he huffed, "I guess I'll see you when school ends." Nick whined.

"At least come and bring me some lunch," he complained, plopping over so that he was no longer sitting up on the bed. Jeff rolled his eyes for probably the fifth time that morning.

"Okay, okay. I'll see you at lunch. Now I gotta get to class," the blonde said before hurrying over to the door.

"Wait!"

Jeff paused and turned around in exasperation. "Wha-"

"Can I have another kiss?"

Jeff stared at Nick's puckered lips before striding over and placing a quick peck on them.

"Gotta go," he mumbled before exiting the room.

Nick instantly felt his mood dampen when Jeff left the room. He wanted his nurse back as soon as he was gone.

Oh.

Jeff wearing a nurse outfit wouldn't even be that bad. Especially if it were pink, and it had a miniskirt that was super tight (and super mini) with lacey thigh highs, a garter belt, and-

_Woah._

Nick derailed that train before it could get much farther and cause some unwanted problems. He was never known to have a crossdressing kink. Or a roleplaying kink either. Those types of odd turn-ons were always Jeff's forte. The blonde was either rubbing off on him, or Nick was just _really _sexually deprived. Maybe it was both.

Or his fever may have been making him delusional.

Yeah, it was probably the fever.

Nick groaned and shoved his face into his pillow. Now that he was up, he wasn't going to be going back to bed soon, and with Jeff gone, he really didn't have anything to do that would interest him. There wouldn't be anything interesting to watch on the TV, and all the video games in the room were practically Jeff's and Nick knew better than to go messing around on his files. His head was pounding anyways, he didn't think he'd be able to stare at a TV screen for a long amount of time.

He eyed his phone, which was sitting on the end table right next to the head of the bed.

There was something he could do. And it didn't even require him getting up!

He swiped it and sent a text message to Jeff first.

_Jeff, I miss you. Nevermind with going to class, skip so you can come back_

After hitting send, Nick started ruminating on that text message. Did he see a little too clingy?

_Okay, that last text was kinda weird, can't wait to see you at lunch_

There! Fixed it! But now what was he to do? Jeff wasn't going to reply since he had classes, and he couldn't count on any of his other friends because they were also in class. He started scrolling through his contacts until a certain name was highlighted.

Harmony.

The young girl was home-schooled due to her excessive and strenuous performing schedules that constantly appeared. It wouldn't hurt to send her a text message, especially since the last time he had heard from her was on Valentine's Day. He typed out a simple message and hit send.

In less than a minute, he was replied to.

_Hey stranger! What are you up to? - Harmony_

Nick grinned and cheered in delight. Something told him he'd be able to trust in the girl.

_Nothing much! :) I'm sick so I've been ordered to get better._

The two continued texting back and forth, talking about a wide variety of things like their counts on how many times they've seen _Hello, Dolly!_ or _RENT_. It was actually very comforting for the young Duval and he remembered why he started liking Harmony in the first place. Of course he wasn't having any romantic inclinations for her now, but she was a great companion no matter how intimidating she was.

When Nick checked his phone again, he realized he had been texting all morning and the lunch period had already began. He pouted whenhe realized Jeff wasn't there.

_Where are yooou? :( _

He didn't like to be kept waiting and he felt miserable without Jeff. Now that his attention had been brought back to the blonde-headed boy, it wasn't going back to Harmony anytime soon.

So Nick sat up in the bed, sniffling and wrapping the comforter around him tight as he waited for his boyfriend to walk through the door.

* * *

><p>Jeff had to say two things about the way Dalton ran their lunch periods.<p>

1. Unless you were going off campus for lunch, the cafeteria's system for buying food was very unconventional. Jeff had to practically scan Nick's card three times and jump through seventeen hoops before he was able to pick up something for both of them. But...

2. He was also pretty glad that they got an hour and a half for lunch, accommodating for some of the students going off campus or going home for lunch. It was pretty awesome really.

He made a beeline for his table, planning to drop his lunch off before going to spend the rest of his lunch time with Nick, but before he was even seated, he was being interrogated.

"Oh my _god_, Nick's the bottom?"

Jeff sat the lunches down and stared at his companion in shock.

"Trent, why do you think everyone's _gay_?" Blaine asked, vocalizing pretty much everyone who was present's thoughts on the matter while entwining his hand with Kurt's.

Oh, Jeff almost forgot the Kurt joined Dalton yesterday. Of course he was joining in their clique as well.

"Excuse me. A) Have you _seen_ Jeff's hair? There is no way a straight guy can manage it and pull off that look _that_ well." Jeff touched his hair in confusion. He did take care of grooming it, but didn't everybody? Thad chose that moment to walk in, looking very disheveled.

Trent pointed a finger at him. "Exhibit A," he said, earning a snicker from the other boys. "And don't tell me I'm not the only one that notices them making googly eyes at each other _all the time_?"

Jeff and Blaine shared a glance. Since Valentine's Day, Blaine was the only one to know that Nick and Jeff actually were in a relationship, which meant Kurt probably knew it too. But Blaine and Kurt could tell that they weren't going to make the announcement to everyone yet, so they chose to act ignorant as well.

"Well, Nick doesn't bottom because there's no bottoming to be done," Jeff said, poking around at some food on his plate.

"I think Trent is just losing it," Kurt shrugged towards Jeff. Blaine smiled at him and gave his hand a small squeeze.

Trent decided to just eat his food without a comment.

"What are we talking about?" Thad asked, shooting a confused glance around the table.

"Nick and Jeff's 'juicy love life'," Wes said, adding the air quotes for emphasis. Jeff nearly chocked on his food but covered it up with a non-concerning cough.

"Except for there isn't one," David added, choosing now to pipe in. Jeff nodded but felt crestfallen on the inside. He hated hiding things from his friends and he knew the longer something stayed a secret, the bigger the problem became.

"Oh yeah, I didn't see him in Latin, is he okay?" Thad asked.

Jeff felt a little grateful they were deviating from his relationship with Nick. It was getting a little too hot to handle.

"He's fine. It's just a fever," he said off-handedly.

"Catch it from the heat of love?" Trent asked, raising and eyebrow. Jeff just sighed and stood up.

"Y'know. I think I might go see if I can talk to that new kid," he said, cutting Trent off before he could go on another rant about how Nick and Jeff would make perfect children. _That_ conversation had been pretty awkward when it happened.

He picked up the two lunches and scanned the cafeteria, looking for the Alexander kid that had spoken up during Warbler practice yesterday. His eyes fell on the familiar head of curly hair and he walked over to where he was sitting alone and sat down beside him. After talking to Alexander, he'd go visit Nick.

"Hey, mind if I sit here?" Jeff asked, gaining the other's attention. Alexander shook his head and smiled.

"No, no, go ahead. Be my guest," he said excitedly, his smooth voice singing even as he talked. Jeff smiled and sat down beside him.

Now that he was closer to the other boy, he could tell some defining physical features he didn't notice before. Alexander had quite a petite figure. It wasn't like Nick's; Alexander's shoulders weren't as broad and his hips were a bit wider. He had tanned skin and full pink lips. Long eyelashes framed almond shaped brown eyes that expressed his emotions clearly. His hands seemed perfectly manicured, but on one hand, the nails were longer – much longer, than that of the other hand. Another thing Jeff couldn't ignore was his hair. It was a mass of curls, _real_ curls, which were pulled back and held in place by a black headband. It was like brown slinkies being forced into cooperation.

"So how long have you been at Dalton?" Jeff asked, deciding to start up some conversation.

"Well," he started, looking up and pursing his lips, making his face mirror that or pure pondering. "I came here a few days ago. I'm in your English class," he said, looking at Jeff now. The blonde blushed in embarrassment.

"Sorry, I didn't notice you."

Alexander laughed and waved his hand as if dismissing the thought from the air. "It's fine. I don't leave much of a lasting impression in places like this."

In places like this?

"What does that mean?" Jeff asked, quirking an eyebrow up in confusion.

"I kinda have many faces. I'm really shy in a new place full of people who I can tell are my superiors and with adults and stuff. Whenever I'm playing a concert or at a convention though, I am unforgettable," he said, poking his food with his fork.

"You go to conventions? What kinds?" Jeff asked, suddenly brightening. Alexander's smile widened.

"The fact that you pulled only that from my sentence tells me we're going to be great friends! I go to anime conventions. Mainly down in the south where my mom lives. Momocon, Kamicon, MTAC, ABC-"

"You go to MTAC?" Jeff asked excitedly, not able to control the wild grin on his face.

"Um, _duh_!" he said, before giggling with a high-pitched voice. "I've been going since I was in the 7th grade!"

Oh yeah, Jeff could agree that they were going to get along great.

"I've been going since middle school too, I don't think I've ever seen you before," he asked.

Alexander ducked his head and blushed. "Well you know how big it gets there. And I cosplay. People don't usually recognize me," he said. Jeff made an 'o' with his mouth and they fell into silence again.

"So you said you also play concerts?"

Alexander visibly perked up at that. "Yeah!" he said. "I've been playing guitar since I was in the fourth grade!" He held out his nails for Jeff to see.

"Is that why your nails are different lengths?" the blonde asked, looking into the opposite pair of light brown eyes. Alexander nodded, his curls bouncing along with the movement.

"Yeah, you can't really play with long nails on this hand," he said, waving his left hand in the air. 'But when I finger pick, it's good to hand longer nails here," he waved his right hand just as he did the left before setting them back down on the table. Jeff smiled and felt his phone buzz. He checked it and saw he had three unread text messages.

_Jeff, I miss you. Nevermind with going to class, skip so you can come back_

_Okay, that last text was kinda weird, can't wait to see you at lunch_

_Where are yooou? :(_

Jeff stood abruptly, causing Alexander to look at him with wide eyes.

How had he forgotten to go visit Nick? Luckily he only spent the half hour socializing and still had an hour to spend with Nick.

"I-I have to go," he said toward the confused brunette.

"O-okay?"

Jeff took out a pen and scribbled down his number on a napkin. "Text me, we can talk about convention stuff later," he said before scooping up the two lunches and rushing towards his dorm. He pushed open his door and fought to regain his breath.

"I am _so_ sorry I'm late," he apologized, striding over to where Nick was sitting up bundled in blankets.

"What took you so long?" Nick whined, his lower lip jutted out in a pout.

"The guys kept me busy. But I brought you back a sub," Jeff said, plopping down on the bed beside Nick and handing him his lunch. Nick unwrapped it and started eating tentatively from his sandwich.

"'ow 'oh?" the sniffling brunette asked around a mouth full of food. Jeff looked at him in disappointment.

"You are simply the walking example of good manners," Jeff shrugged, "Stay classy." Nick simply flipped him the bird in response, used to Jeff's sense of humor, as he swallowed his food.

"I said 'how so'?" Nick asked clearly, before taking another big bite of food.

"The usual. Trent's on to us," Jeff said, lying back on the bed and staring up at the ceiling.

"No one ever listens to Trent."

"Yeah. He'll be so pissed when we finally tell them," Jeff laughed. Nick let out a little snort of amusement before continuing to scarf down his lunch.

"Slow down. You might choke."

Nick raised an eyebrow. "I'd gladly choke if that meant you'd have to give me mouth-to-mouth," he sang, faking a gag. Jeff giggled.

"Nicky, you don't have to be choking for me to give you mouth-to-mouth," he said suggestively, sitting up and grinning wide. Nick wiggled his eyebrows and Jeff eagerly stole a kiss from him. His lips tasted like turkey and pickles.

"Mmmm," Nick hummed when the blonde pulled away from him.

"Yeah," Jeff scoffed. "'Mmm' for you. You taste like pickles and you feel like a furnace. Seriously." Nick laughed at him before coughing violently. Jeff patted him on the back.

"You alright?"

Nick wheezed. "No…..need…..mouth-to-mouth." His grin, however, gave him away and Jeff whacked him in the back of the head.

"Stop goofing off and hurry up and get better so I can make-out with you without feeling guilty," Jeff said, sitting at the foot of the bed. "Or like I'm going to die in raging Hell fire."

The two sat in a comfortable silence for a while as Nick ate his lunch. Jeff also grabbed his and started nibbling a bit on the food he got, but he wasn't too hungry right now.

"Are you still going to make me soup later?" Nick asked, breaking their silence when he finished his food. Jeff rolled his eyes.

"Your appetite will never be satisfied, will it?"

Nick grinned before he sneezed, curling himself tighter in the blankets. Jeff sighed, put his food away, and crawled over to Nick, sliding under the comforter with him and wrapping his arms around the shorter boy.

"This is nice, thank you," Nick said, sniffling. He nuzzled into Jeff's warmth and the blonde smiled.

"It's fine. Can't wait till we tell the boys and we can do this all the time," Jeff said, burying his nose in Nick's dark hair. He could feel the brunette tense up beside him. "What's wrong, Nicky?"

Nick sighed. "I don't know….I don't think I'm ready to tell everybody anytime soon…"

"Why?"

The two pulled away a little and looked into each other's eyes. Jeff could see doubt and uncertainty swimming in Nick's chocolate-hued eyes and tried not to feel too heartbroken at the look.

"I know that they won't mind, but I'm afraid of the change that will come with telling everybody. What if it's too much?"

Jeff pressed a kiss to Nick's feverish forehead. "But that's why I want people to know. You're so worrisome over something that won't be such a big deal." Nick ducked his head and focused his attention on the gold buttons of the blonde's blazer. "You are _so_ amazing and I'm so lucky that you chose me to fall in love with."

Nick snorted. "I couldn't choose anyone else even if I wanted to."

"You're perfect."

Nick tried to calm the hammering in his chest. He wasn't perfect. If he were perfect, he wouldn't be at this school. If he were perfect, he could stand tall and proud about his relationship with Jeff.

"How can I be perfect if I'm not even good enough for the people around me? For you?" Nick asked. Jeff could tell that he wasn't the only one Nick felt like he was letting down and he cupped his cheeks, tilting his face so they could look at each other.

"You're _more_ than good enough for me. And everyone else thinks so too," he said, brushing his thumbs over Nick's warm cheeks. "I know it's going to be hard, but you have a family here too. And we'll love and support you no matter what you decide to do."

The brunette bit back his tears.

He couldn't help that he was born to a stern father, who was a bit too quick to send the young Duval off to Dalton as soon as eccentricities appeared that deviated from his fatherly standards. He believed the all boys prep school could "straighten him out". They were never close and Nick grew up in fear and intimidation of following his parent's guidelines. George Duval was a powerful lawyer, and Nick couldn't help that he was the only son and heir to the Duval name. His mother, Anna, was the prime example of a perfect wife. She was never-aging, obedient, and efficient in housework. She would never change in the fact that she would always side with Nick's father. She would look at Nick with hard, emotionless eyes and rarely talked to him unless she had to, disregarding the fact that Nick was her son. Long story short, the Duval family was a very terse one that lacked any kind of love at all.

Except for from Nick.

"I just want them to be proud of me," Nick whispered, not trusting his voice to be much louder.

Jeff felt his heart sink. Nick's parents spawned him for the necessity of business, and treated him as a material object that was expected to work perfectly for them on demand. They treated him terribly and all Nick wanted was their love and acceptance because, contrary to their beliefs, Nick cared. He wanted to feel deserving of their love because they were his parents and that love would mean the world to him. He always tossed away his happiness for them; always sided with his parents in hopes of earning some kind of love. He didn't choose to pursue music or art and made excellent grades to please them. Nick only allowed himself to indulge with the Warblers.

Until now.

He was with Jeff. Nick was _in love_ with Jeff, he embraced it, and now they were together. Here, in their room, they were safe; they were happy; they were themselves. That's why Jeff was so patient. This was a huge step for the Duval, who was always striving to meet the wants of his parents before all else. He knew that his mother and father would not accept him being gay – they would actually react pretty negatively – but Nick wasn't backing down. He was just trying to postpone the apocalypse.

"Well, _I'm_ proud of you, and so are the Warblers. We love you, Nick, and that will never change," Jeff said softly. Tears slipped from Nick's eyes and Jeff brushed them aside. He pushed himself closer to Jeff and nuzzled his face into the crook of the blonde's neck, crying softly.

"I love you so much," he said, sniffling and holding Jeff tight. The taller boy sighed and ran his fingers gently through Nick's hair.

"I love you too."

He pressed a kiss to the top of Nick's head, still working his fingers through the dark locks. They didn't know how long they sat there, but when the lunch bell sounded throughout the Dalton grounds, telling everyone the lunch period was over, neither of them moved. Calculus wasn't as important as this.

"Hey, Jeff?"

"Hmmm?"

Nick bit his lip and fumbled with the Warblers pin on Jeff's blazer. "When we do start telling everybody about us, could we tell your family first? Before mine, that is," he said. Jeff hummed in response.

"As soon as you're ready."

* * *

><p><strong>Alright! So some fluffiness and a cold :P Please review~! <strong>


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